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2. The Use of Storybooks in Teaching English as a Foreign Language at Primary Level (2nd AND 3rd Grade) in Slovene Primary Schools : master thesisBarbara Maher, 2022, master's thesis Abstract: This Master’s Thesis deals with the topic of teaching English as a foreign language to young language learners with the use of storybooks/a story-based approach. It has been produced with the intent to encourage and persuade English teachers of young language learners (in Slovenia) to introduce this approach to their early foreign language lessons, by offering a detailed overview of the advantages a story-based approach brings to the context of foreign language instruction, and to serve as a handbook, guiding them through the recommendations for the selection of appropriate storybooks, the preparation for storytelling/storyreading and its implementation, with additional emphasis on the importance of choosing and incorporating suitable story-related activities to each stage of the storytelling/reading act. Moreover, concerns teachers might have when first starting to use this approach, such as whether or not the learner's first language should be used in the story-based lessons, and how many times the same story can be presented to the learners, have been touched on, as well. Furthermore, the Master’s Thesis provides a selection of ready-to-use story-based lesson plans, prepared around chosen storybooks, all made to fit the goals/aims of foreign language instruction at primary level in the 2nd and 3rd grade in Slovene primary schools.
Keywords: Storybooks, Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL), Young Learners (YL), Teaching English to Young Learners (TEYL), Story-Based Approach to Teaching English as a Foreign Language to Young Learners, Story-Based Lesson Plans
Published in DKUM: 03.08.2022; Views: 888; Downloads: 90
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3. Use of animated songs in early teaching of English and GermanJanja Stariha, 2019, master's thesis Abstract: This MA thesis deals with animated songs and their use in early foreign language teaching. In the theoretical part I have described child development, first and second language acquisition, multimedia, foreign language teaching and the use of songs in the classroom. As the literature on animated songs has not yet been developed, I have turned to theory on multimedia, music and art to formulate a set of criteria for easier choice of animated songs for use in class. In the empirical part I have chosen some high quality, didactically apropriate animated songs. Content, sound, music, text, design, animation, multimedia learning theories, art theory and didactics were taken into account. The final part of the paper shows the results of a questionnaire that was forwarded to Slovenian teachers who teach children aged 3–11 to see to what extent they know and use animated songs. Nowadays acces to songs is no longer a problem so it is important for teachers to know how to evaluate multimedia materials. There are both favorable opinions and cautions regarding technology use in childhood, so good judgement is needed. The choice and use of animated songs in the young learner classroom should be didactically justified.
Keywords: animated songs, songs, young learners, foreign language teaching, English, German, multimedia, modern technology, didactics, preschool, primary school
Published in DKUM: 25.10.2019; Views: 1537; Downloads: 173
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4. Pre-service teachers' attitude towards learning and teaching English to young learnersSilva Bratož, 2015, original scientific article Abstract: Considerable attention has recently been invested into researching the influence of affective variables, such as attitudes and motivation on foreign language learning and teaching. The topic is timely and relevant especially at the time when English is being introduced as an obligatory subject in the first cycle of primary school in Slovenia. Two key issues are addressed: attitudes towards learning and teaching English as a foreign language and the profile of the young learners' language teacher. The article presents the results of a small-scale research conducted with a group of primary education students on their attitudes towards learning and teaching English. The results suggest that trainee teachers have moderately positive attitudes towards learning English but diverse attitudes towards teaching a foreign language.
Keywords: English as a foreign language, pre-service teachers, attitudes, motivation, young language learners
Published in DKUM: 22.09.2017; Views: 1286; Downloads: 127
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5. Use of materials and aids for teaching English to young learnersJana Rečnik, 2016, undergraduate thesis Abstract: The aim of this thesis is to present the use of different materials and aid when teaching English to young learners. Through the history, many different methods were used for teaching foreign languages, which will be presented in this thesis. Furthermore, it is important to know which characteristics should a good teacher have and which are the roles of a teacher in the classroom. The aim is also to present different visual material, songs, stories and games that can be used while teaching young learners.
The last part of my thesis is focused on lesson observations at language school Eduka, Slovenj Gradec. Three different age groups were observed and mainly I was focused on the use of different materials and aids in different age groups.
Keywords: English language teaching, young learners, teaching materials and aids, games, stories, songs, visual material, lesson observations
Published in DKUM: 05.09.2016; Views: 1588; Downloads: 116
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6. Teaching English as an Additional Language to Very Young Learners with the Hippo and Friends CourseMaja Rupnik, 2016, master's thesis Abstract: The main subject of the master's thesis research is teaching English as an additional (foreign) language in early childhood (pre-school period) to learners between 3 and 6 years of age with the Hippo and Friends (Starter, 1, and 2) course, written by Selby and McKnight and released by University of Cambridge in 2006. After presenting theoretical principles of teaching and learning an additional (foreign) language at an early age together with the presentation of the Hippo and Friends course, the empirical part of the thesis analyses and evaluates the course’s teaching outcomes. These were acquired between October 2015 and March 2016 by carrying out a 3-leveled Hippo and Friends English language course for very young learners. 5 courses (2 groups at the H&F Starter level, 2 groups at the H&F 1 level and 1 group at the H&F 2 level) were attended by a total number of 45 pre-school children. The courses took place on five locations in North-Eastern Slovenia (Oplotnica, Kebelj, Slovenska Bistrica, Poljčane and Pragersko); the teacher taught them in a form of a student work at the ‘Bla Bla’ language school. In addition to general evaluation of the Hippo and Friends course aims achievement and self-evaluation of teaching, particular focus is placed on the analysis and evaluation of learners’ emotional responses to the first contact with English, their linguistic progress and instructional factors that affected it the most. The Hippo and Friends course has made the majority of very young learners’ first contact with English enjoyable and fun. In addition to developing the very basic listening, speaking and discourse skills, the majority of very young learners have exceeded the suggested target vocabulary by the end of the course. Throughout the course, the majority of very young learners has more successfully acquired and, at the end of it, more correctly orally produced the target vocabulary items (TVI) presented in lessons with a lower number of newly presented TVI, the TVI taught with a higher practising rate, the TVI of thematic units the learners enjoyed the most and the TVI taught through songs and stories.
Keywords: very young learners, teaching English, learning English, Hippo and Friends course
Published in DKUM: 11.08.2016; Views: 1816; Downloads: 123
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7. Comparative assessment of young learners' foreign language competence in three Eastern European countriesMihaela Brumen, Branka Čagran, Shelagh Rixon, 2009, original scientific article Abstract: This paper concerns teacher practices in, and beliefs about, the assessment of young learners' progress in English in three Eastern European countries (Slovenia, Croatia, and the Czech Republic). The central part of the paper focuses on an international project involving empirical research into assessment of young learners' foreign language competence in Slovenia, Croatia and the Czech Republic. With the help of an adapted questionnaire, we collected data from a non-random sample of primary and foreign language teachers who teach foreign languages at the primary level in these countries. The research shows that English as a foreign language is taught mostly by young teachers either primary specialists or foreign language teachers. These teachers most frequently use oral assessment/interviews or self-developed tests. Other more authentic types of assessment, such as language portfolios, are rarely used. The teachers most frequently assess speaking and listening skills, and they use assessment involving vocabulary the most frequently of all. However, there are significant differences in practice among the three countries.
Keywords: education, assessment, early learning, young learners, foreign languages, foreign language learning
Published in DKUM: 07.06.2012; Views: 1983; Downloads: 105
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